Once the GTX 660 and GTX 650 were out, a glance at the performance gap suggested there is a good chance Nvidia will fill it with another card. Today, Nvidia launched its new – GTX 650 Ti, so the company’s offer now lists (top to bottom):

The GTX 650 Ti is based on Nvidia’s Kepler GK106 GPU, first seen on the recently launched GTX 660. In its full version, the GK106 GPU packs five SMX units with 960 CUDA cores, 24 ROPs and 80 texture units. In case of the GTX 650 Ti, four SMXs are used, offering a total of 768 CUDA cores and 64 texture units.

Unfortunately, the memory took a hit as well and the GTX 650 Ti has a mere 128-bit memory interface, unlike the GTX 660’s 192-bit. Note that the design allows for both 1GB and 2GB versions of the card.

The GTX 650 Ti’s playing field should be 1080p (1920x1080). Our today’s guest is one of the faster GTX 650 Ti samples that comes with 2GB of memory as well – EVGA’s GTX 650 Ti SSC 2GB.

Reference GPUs tick at 925MHz. The GTX 660’s reference GPU clock was at 980MHz when it launched, but many partners overclocked it beyond 1GHz. We expected the same this time around and EVGA did not disappoint.

Although the GK 106 GPU originally supports GPU Boost, the cut down version on the GTX 650 Ti doesn’t have it. This is proof enough that the card comes from GTX 650, rather than GTX 660 series. This also means the card always runs at its highest possible clock, which is 1072MHz in SuperSuperclocked's world.

· Most EVGA products now carry a 3 Year Warranty, which can be extended to 5 or 10 years (upon registration, and a small fee starting from approx €8 dependent upon the price of the product)

· The product warranty covers the product, not the user. (So in short, this means an end user could sell the product on an online auction site, for example, and the product will still be covered within the 3 Year Warranty period.)

· Registration is no longer required for RMAs with our Guest RMA process.

· The Step-Up Program and Extended Warranties will be available for all original owners registered with the new global RMA system within 30 days of the purchase.

· If you move, you can send your product back to your local warranty centre no matter what region you purchased it in.

· A new Standard Cross-Shipping RMA service is available.

Assassin's Creed III

EVGA’s GTX 650 Ti 1GB variants (for retail/etail/SI) are bundled (via a code) with the full PC version of Assassin's Creed III.

We like the packaging EVGA started using for the GTX 660/650 series, as it’s smaller than what the company uses for faster cards, but still tough enough. Nvidia made a rule that every package should have the card’s name on the side of the box, which should help customers and retailers find the right card easier.

EVGA included a molex-to-6-pin converter, DVI-to-VGA dongle, driver CD, EVGA badge, user guide and a few papers with advice for setting it up.

The GTX 650 Ti SSC is the shortest Kepler based card so far. It couldn’t have been made shorter because of the PCI Express connector length.

The PCB is only 14.5cm long, which is about the length of the cooler shroud.

The picture below shows the GTX 660, which also uses the GK106 GPU. Its PCB is 17.3cm long while the cooler measures 24.3cm together with the shroud. The GTX 650 has a TDP of 110W, which is 30W less than the GTX 660. Nvidia allows smaller coolers, i.e. GTX 650 designs, and EVGA took them up on this offer.

EVGA GTX 650 Ti SSC looks pretty much identical to the GTX 650 SC, or any other EVGA GTX 650 for that matter.

The card has dual slot cooling that relies on a single down-draft 80mm fan. The shroud isn’t completely closed up but at least has no exhausts between the fan and I/O panel, so at least some hot air will exit the case.

The GTX 650 Ti draws power via one 6-pin connector, just like the GTX 650, although the latter’s TDP is mere 64W.

The fan is part of the shroud. Taking off the shroud reveals a circular heatsink.

Two phases are left for the GPU while another one, towards the top of the PCB, was left for the memory.

The heatsink is one slot wide, but the fan takes up another.

GTX 650 Ti supports triple displays straight out of the box. This is why the I/O panel has two dual link DVIs and a mini-HDMI out. EVGA threw in a DVI-to-VGA dongle as well.

EVGA changed the texture work on the shroud and since it’s now smooth and without holes, it will not gather dust as much. While the likes of EVGA’s GTX 680 Signature 2 are visually more appealing, they’re quick to collect dust and harder to clean.

Playing at 1920x1080 was pleasant enough, but the card loses pace once the filters are on. The difference between EVGA GTX 650 Ti and GTX 660 is more evident when antialiasing is in the game. In fact, turning on antialiasing clearly separates GTX 650 (Ti) from GTX 660 (Ti) and it’s clear this isn’t a card built to handle antialiasing at 1920x1080.

Unigine Heaven

We used PrecisionX tool, which of course supports the GTX 650 Ti. To mark the launch, EVGA even made the new skin, picture below.

Despite the already high factory overclock (147MHz over reference 925MHz) 650 Ti SSC can be overclocked even further. Additional 50MHz may not sound that impressive, but giving the memory a 150MHz boost gave a 7 percent performance bump. Although memory specs say 1500MHz, EVGA decided to stick with the reference 1350MHz.

Fan speed can be controlled but all the tools we ended up using read the RPM in percentages only. The fan didn’t exceed 23 percent RPM during gaming. Once we pushed it to 40 percent, we could hear it well and 100% ended up being very loud. Note however that there will be no need to mess with fan speed, because AUTO mode runs just fine and delivers a good cooling-to-noise ratio.

GPU went up to 66°C, which is solid enough and the card is inaudible quiet when idle. The only thing that bothered us a bit was the operating noise from somewhere inside the PCB – it wasn’t too loud but we could faintly hear it from inside the case.

As you can see from the graph below, overclocking didn't result in more noise. The fan remained quiet but the GPU temperature did climb to 72°C.

Power consumption is already good, and even better considering the high factory overclock on the EVGA GTX 650 Ti SSC 2GB.

In general, EVGA GTX 650 Ti SSC is a good graphics card that runs well, consumes little, stays quiet and doesn’t get very hot. In turn, simple cooling was sufficient to keep the card cool. Consumption-performance ratio is exceptionally good. The only thing we did not like was the operating noise in question which resembles a faint squeal of sorts, a high pitched tone.

The card is sufficient for 1080p gaming, unless you’re absolutely bent on maxing out all the settings. Once you put the GTX 650 Ti’s price and its 1920x1080 performance in perspective, you’ll see that it ranks slightly lower than the competing Radeon HD 7850.

EVGA offers the GTX 650 Ti in 2GB and 1GB flavors, where the former costs some €10 more. If you’re a fan of Assassin’s Creed 3, then you should know that EVGA bundles this game in certain regions with their GTX 650 Ti 1GB card.

The GTX 650 doesn’t support SLI, but offers three video outs that can be used simultaneously. When compared to the competition, EVGA GTX 650 Ti SSC 2GB would come really close to the HD 7850, but not close enough to take it down.

In the end, let’s talk cash – the GTX 650 Ti SSC 2GB goes for about €165, while the same card with 1GB of memory costs about €155. Radeon HD 7850 2GB goes for €175 while 1GB version costs €150. It’s pretty clear that the GTX 650 Ti has potential and a price adjustment may just turn out to be decisive in this matchup. Other than that, EVGA’s GTX 650 Ti SSC 2GB is a quality card that we’d gladly recommend to anyone, but mostly occasional gamers who like 1680x1050 or 1920x1080 and don’t fret over detail settings.

Nanoxia is launching its first computer case dubbed the Deep Silence 1 and the company is quite excited since this is its first. The marketing campaign has been in full swing for a few months already, but if you haven’t caught a glimpse of it, you should know the hype was justified. We'd like to thank pc-cooling.de for kindly providing us with the testing sample.

The name Deep Silence 1 suggests Nanoxia plans to follow up with more cases and we're fine with that. It was built with lots of care and follows the latest trends. At the same time, it sports a few unique and interesting features that, if nothing else, are worth taking a look at.

I knew how the Deep Silence 1 looks but didn’t recognize it once it was out of the box. That was my bad though – the case was upside down.

Jokes aside, the Deep Silence 1 relies on simple design for the uniform look. The name already suggests aiming for silence rather than flashy looks, and the case is as sealed off as possible.

Nanoxia made sure to provide plenty of info on the Deep Silence 1 on the package, text and pictures. The end result looks good, but it could use cutout handles for easier carrying.

The installation manual is written in German, English, French and Spanish, but has plenty of pictures and descriptions of features. You’ll find an ESP extension cable in the box and solid plugs to replace the water cooling grommets. Nanoxia threw in a 5.25’’-to-3.5’’converter as well, which is a welcome addition at a time when many manufacturers no longer do that.

The front panel has soundproofed doors, confirmation enough for the company’s quest for silence. The doors are made of plastic, but quality piano black finish gives them a metal look. There is no option to flip the location of the door hinges.

The top door hides three 5.25’’bays, reset switch and 2x fan control. The bottom door hides two 12cm fans.

Front fans are equipped with an easy to clean dust filter. You can access the fan and/or dustfilter by pushing the arrow on the fan panel.

The door blocks all air from the front but the Deep Silence 1 has air intakes on the sides.

The case has two Nanoxia DS1202512SELN 1300 RPM fans. Taking the fans and their filters out is a breeze.

The fan cover utilizes a “click” mechanism. It’s worth noting that although more convenient, these mechanisms are also more prone to wearing out with age and use. In our case, every single one worked flawlessly but owners will probably want to refrain from excessive force after hearing the click, just to be safe. Nanoxia gives a two year warranty with the Deep Silence 1.

Front door locks rely on magnets, which are a more reliable and durable solution. The following picture shows where the magnets are – the screws mark the spot.

We found a few screw holes in the front panel frame, hidden with foam caps. Some of the caps were quite loose, which is what actually caught our attention in the first place. In fact, had there not been for the caps, we’re sure most users wouldn’t even notice. This of course isn’t something that will affect operation, or even annoy you when it’s behind the door, but it doesn’t do the case much justice either.

To remove the front panel simply hold the cutout at the bottom of the front panel and pull it towards you with a firm tug. The panel isn’t as polished inside as it is outside. We found traces of glue around magnet holes, but this is the interior after all, so it can be tolerated.

The front panel does not have to be removed unless you want to stick a radiator behind the front fans.

The top panel is sealed off for the computer to be as quiet as possible. Another important feature the Deep Silence 1 is the Air Chimney, which provides additional passive cooling from the top panel. Keeping it closed will maintain the uniform design and silence.

The Air Chimney can easily be opened or closed using the slider on the side of the top cover.

The Deep Silence has two USB 3.0 connectors, two USB 2.0 connectors and audio in/audio out jacks.

The I/O panel can be retracted into the case when not in use, a gentle press until a click will do. ON/OFF is the only key that’s not hidden.

The top panel can house two 140/120mm fans. Setting it up requires taking off the top lid. It is done by holding the recess provided at the rear of the case and pulling it upwards with a firm tug. It didn’t take much effort, and the same goes for the front panel.

The fan should be held inside and secured to the top by fastening the screws from the outside. The fans can be connected to the supplied fan controller.

The right panel is fully closed. The left panel is also closed, but one part of it can be opened if needed.

The panels have a slight matte feel to them and you can see it on the pictures – they scatter light equally. It won’t catch fingerprints easy but it will require cleaning.

The left side panel comes soundproofed. The 2-layer insulating material consists of bitumen layer and layer of foam compound. The right panel wasn’t treated and weighs much less than the left.

If you want to install a fan in the left side panel, remove the outer cover by loosening the screws inside it. You can leave the dust filter.

There was no need to treat the right panel as it is closed.

The panels are held in place by two screws and are generally easy to take off on and put back.

The rear panel houses eight expansioin slots and a single 14cm fan (1100RPM). The expansion holes have mesh covers, although closed covers may seem more fitting for a silent case.

There are four water cooling holes, so that appropriate water cooling components can be operated or mounted externally.

PSU is mounted in the bottom, fan down, but can be mounted facing up as well. The PSU dust filter is removable without opening the case. It’s long enough to cover the 120/140mm fan slot as well. The Deep Silence 1 has 2cm feet and is quite stable on them.

The Deep Silence 1 takes ATX, micro-ATX and mini-ATX motherboards. Nanoxia left a total of nine cable management holes in the motherboard tray. Among the cables we found inside, and there were a lot, we found six fan connectors, originating from the fan controller on the front panel. The controller must be connected to a 4-pin Molex cable. The USB 3.0 connector is internal.

The Deep Silence 1 comes with three installed fans, two of which are 12cm ones on the front and a 14cm one on the rear panel. Additionally, two 12/14cm fans can be mounted on the top panel, a single 12/14cm on the bottom and a 12/14cm fan on the side panel, which means the Deep Silence 1 supports up to seven fans.

If you decide to strap the Deep Silence with a fan on the bottom panel, you’ll need to take off the plastic part that acts as HDD cage holder. The PSU will be stable thanks to the two rubber feet that although glued to the bottom, will not come off easily.

The Deep Silence 1 can take up to eight drives in the three sections of its HDD cage (2x3 HDD 1x2 HDD).

The top two cages are interchangeable and can also be removed if required. Same goes for the bottom one, in case you need to put a 240mm radiator behind the front fans. In order not to run out of HDD space, Nanoxia made sure that a cage can be placed in the designated holder on the bottom, closer to the PSU.

Maximum VGA length is 315mm (up to 445mm with HDD cage removed). Maximum CPU cooler height is up to 185mm.

The hard disk drives are installed on frames which feature rubber grommets (for 3.5” drives). Each mounting frame takes 2.5” or 3.5” drives. In order to extract the frame, squeeze the bracket handles and pull the slider out.

Installing optical drives is tool-less. The Deep Silence 1 comes with a 5.25’’-3.5“ converter in the bottom 5.25’’ slot.

Cable management holes have rubber grommets that are fixed firmly in place and will prevent cable wear and tear. There is about 1.7cm of space between the right panel and motherboard tray.

Towards the top of the tray are two more holes for CPU power and fan cables.

Locking and loading the Deep Silence 1 was easy. Knowing our test board, EVGA’s X58 FTW3, we made sure to mount the CPU cooler before throwing the board inside. We thought we probably won’t be able to put the cooler in later, although to be fair, EVGA X58 FTW3’s CPU socket is almost on the edge of the board. All in all, we had fun setting up the Deep Silence 1.

Not even a bunch of cables on the back will prevent the door from closing. It’s nice that the tie straps can be released if you pull the tiny part sticking out with your nail.

The Deep Silence 1 is quite roomy and most scenarios still leave the space you see on the right freed up.

The Deep Silence 1 has eight expansion slots but our ATX motherboard, which is standard sized at 305mm, can only reach the seventh one. The 2cm between the motherboard and the PSU could’ve been utilized towards the top of the case, like with thicker water cooling radiators.

Cooler Master Hyper 612S fit nicely and we had no problems getting it in there, but it left just enough room for the top panel fan (picture below). However, as long as the cooler does not go over the edge of the motherboard, there will be room for a radiator on the top panel.

The top panel has many holes and it’s easy to get confused. You can mount a 200mm fan here as well, but we threw in a 140mm one.

As we said before, maximum supported VGA length is 315mm (up to 445mm with the HDD cage removed) and maximum CPU cooler height is up to 185mm.

Various layouts with three HDD cages is among the Deep Silence 1’s greatest strengths. If you need a reference for the PSU, the Silent Pro 800W PSU (picture below) is 15.5cm long, and there is about 5cm left between it and the HDD cage (if you choose to put it there of course).

Note that front panel doors with sound insulation have their own set of common problems, mostly with gear that has many buttons sticking out, such as fan controllers. Thankfully, the Deep Silence comes with ha two channel controller supporting up to six fans (three per channel).

As we showed you earlier, all intakes (front, bottom, left side panel) are readily accessible and have easy to clean dust filters.

The top panel boasts the Air Chimney, which is controlled with a handle on the left side panel.

The expansion slot covers were a bit hard to take out. The problem is in the bent part that prevents smooth operation.

Once we finished everything and started up the computer, green LED lit up the power key. The fans in the case are painted green, but have no LEDs. Besides, who needs glowing fans in a closed case?

As far as performance goes, the three stocked fans do a good job, but longer gaming and more intense CPU usage will require opening the Air Chimney and venting the case out. You could also speed up the fans to the max – they won’t introduce much noise.

Running our GTX 680 Signature 2 with the Air Chimney opened and fans maxed out resulted in °63C. The GPU was fine but the CPU (QuadCore Intel Core i7-930, 3GHz) was dangerously aproaching the limit. Note however that the CPU cooler we used is semi passive.

Inserting one 14cm silent fan on the top panel turned to be very good investment and the image below speaks for itself. The top fan acted as a CPU cooler fan. Also if we compare the results, it is obvious that you can do away with three fans as long as your graphics card cooling is good.

Nanoxia definitely isn’t the first company to spring to mind when thinking of computer cases, as the company built its name making quality fans, but if the Deep Silence 1 is anything to go by, that is about to change. The name itself suggests that we’ll see more models and Nanoxia can surely give the competition a hard time.

The company aimed at making a silent case and this is where the Deep Silence 1 excels. Silent cases usually come with closed side panels, in order to keep noise to a minimum, and the Deep Silence 1 isn’t an exception. This contributed to a clean and simple, yet stylish look.

The Deep Silence comes stocked with three silent fans but supports up to seven fans. Nanoxia threw in some tricks for quick cooling boosts, no fans included. One of these tricks is called the Air Chimney, which is basically a mobile part of the top panel that can be raised to act as an exhaust. Users can counteract heat generation under the top panel by simply opening the Air Chimney and allowing the heat to escape.

Nanoxia made sure the Deep Silence 1 is up to the latest standards and the case brings USB 3.0, sound isolation on the front and side panels, modular HDD brackets, room for largest graphics cards and CPU coolers, etc. It is tough, stable and offers what should be enough for most users. We did notice that metal quality and finishing touches aren’t quite up to Cooler Master or Fractal Design standards, despite seemingly resembling some.

The Deep Silence 1 is currently listed at about €109, which we’d call some €10 too steep. On the other hand, this is Nanoxia’s first step on the market and what a step it is, so we’ll cut them some slack. The case is feature packed, perhaps more than some other cases in this price range, and is definitely the one to remember, so let the first one be crowned, we say.

Point Of View / TGT has promptly jumped aboard the proverbial GTX 660 Ti overclocking train and their GTX 660 Ti Ultra Charged comes clocked at 1033MHz Base Clock and 1111MHz+ Boost Clock. Just like they did with the GTX 680 series, TGT used Low Leakage Selection chips. Naturally, the best chips excel in auto overclocking and the company says the GTX 660 Ti UC’s clocks go up to 1200MHz and even higher. The GTX 660 Ti Ultra Charged comes with 2GB of memory running at 1502MHz (6008MHz effectively).

TGT ran with reference cooling and we’ve seen that it’s good enough for cards running at 1033MHz or lower. However, we’re quite confident that the yet-to-be-released Beast version will come with more advanced cooling.

The GTX 660 Ti was supposed to be a budget card for gamers, but Nvidia set the price a bit too high in our opinion. The card rarely goes below €280 in Europe. The Ultra Charged goes for €298, but the good thing about it is its availability.

We’ll soon have the full review, running SLI too. So far we’ve seen that TGT was right when it said the GPU overclocks beyond 1200MHz and the maximum we measured was 1229MHz.

PoV/TGT bundles Borderlands 2 voucher with the card, meaning you’ll be able to download it when it comes out next month.

We've been anxious to get our mitts on EVGA's GTX 680 SC Signature 2 graphics card as this is the company's first dual fan GTX 680. The card isn’t much faster than the original GTX 680 SC Signature, i.e. 1097MHz vs. 1084MHz GPU and 1552MHz vs. 1552MHz memory, but the new cooler means a quieter card that overclocks better. Good news however is that the new card is priced the same as the original GTX 680 Signature - $519.99.

The following two photos show our temperature measurements – first up is the GTX 680 SC Signature 2, followed by GTX 680 SC Signature. The difference of 3°C says enough really, especially since the cooler was almost inaudible. The two fans don’t go over 2040RPM, while the Signature’s single fan reached 2400RPM.

EVGA GTX 680 SC Signature 2

EVGA GTX 680 SC Signature

Unfortunately, we’ve sent the GTX 680 SC Signature back to EVGA and we couldn’t compare the results to those of the Signature 2, since the 304.79 driver we used for the latter card give better results. Users shouldn’t expect any major differences in performance of the two Signature cards, because they’re similarly clocked. We’ll soon see whether two fan cooling helps with overclocking so stay tuned.

Following up on their GTX 680 Beast and Ultra Charged cards, Point of View / TGT decided to offer even more to the enthusiast bunch. So, if 2GB isn’t enough for you, you should know that PoV / TGT‘s offer now boasts the GTX 680 Ultra Charged with 4GB of memory. Note however that other than the memory, the card is identical to the GTX 680 Ultra Charged, meaning it packs a GPU factory overclocked by 105MHz. Those who crave more can always go for the GTX 680 Beast, whose GPU is factory overclocked by 157MHz.

The high clocks are not a problem thanks to the special triple slot cooling. TGT opted for hand selected low leakage chips in order to provide maximum performance. This ensures that auto-overclocks are maxed out and allows for superior overclocking headroom.

GTX 680 Ultra Charged comes with no special extras – you get a driver CD and a user manual. The box is tough, with a design along the lines of PoV/TGT’s earlier designs. We’d love to see a gift game with premium cards, but it seems like those days are gone.

GTX 680 Ultra Charged 4GB graphics card uses large but efficient cooling. We’ve had the chance to see it in action on the GTX 680 Beast and GTX 680 Ultra Charged 2GB cards and although it did a good cooling job, what we liked the most was its silent operation.

Seeing as how the Ultra Charged 4GB and Ultra Charged 2GB only differ in memory, we expect the cooler to repeat its earlier feat.

The fans are enclosed in a plastic mask, which is easily removable if you want to clean them. The cooler has different fans - the central fan is a 9cm one while the other two are 8cm in diameter. Size isn’t the only difference as the propellers were designed differently as well.

All three fans are connected via a single power connector, so Auto or manual RPM settings introduce changes on all three fans. The three fans make sure that every part of the heatsink is nice and cool.

The heatsink is split in two parts, with five heatpipes going through - two go towards the I/O panel, while three go in the opposite direction.

Heatpipes start on in the pretty large copper base. The base is massive, partly because the cooler is held in place only with four screws, which again go through the base. The design is pretty tough and we didn’t hear/see any vibration due to the number of fans. PoV / TGT used foam-like pads in two places between the heatsink and PCB, in order to ensure a proper and stable fit with no vibration noise.

PoV/TGT strapped the card with a heatspreader for memory and other low profile components on the front PCB. TGT’s backplate can be found in the back, although it doesn’t touch the memory so it’s questionable whether it improves cooling performance. However, it prevents the PCB from warping and definitely makes the card look better.

Reference GTX 680 cards draw power via two 6-pin connectors. Factory overclocked GTX 680 Ultra Charged has one 6-pin and one 8-pin power connector. Point of View / TGT uses five phase PWM design, one phase more than on the reference card.

GTX 680 Ultracharged comes with two dual-link DVI outs, but only one is analog VGA-out capable. The VGA-out requires using the bottom DVI – the one in line with HDMI and DisplayPort connectors. Nvidia made sure not to lag behind the competition so Kepler based cards can run up to four displays simultaneously.

The card has two SLI connectors, which means Quad GPU is possible. Note however that being three slots wide, finding room for four GTX 680 Ultra Charged cards will be a challenge.

We must admit that we had great expectations when it comes to overclocking, since TGT claims it used handpicked low leakage chips. Such chips do better with auto overclocking and tend to deliver higher maximum clocks, but should provide superior overclocking headroom as well.

Overclocking the memory was quite interesting, seeing as how the card has 4GB of memory. Naturally, doubling the number of memory chips doubles the chance of one of them turning out overclocking unfriendly, but luckily, all of them ran flawlessly, even after our 225MHz overclock (900MHz effectively).

We’ve noticed that the Power Target is a bit higher than on the reference design, but the voltage was left at reference values.

Before we move on, we should say that we left the fans in AUTO mode. The cooler ran so well that there was simply no need for it and the fans remained quiet even after our overclocking. Thermal throttling occurs at above 79°C, but the GTX 680 Ultra Charged never exceeded 72°C – that’s right, not even after overclocking.

Squeezing out maximum clocks, and in turn performance, from the GK104 requires a lot of attention. Below is a clear example of when to use the Power Target slider.

Once we overclocked the GPU by +70MHz, we noticed that auto-overclocking figures tend to oscillate somewhat, as you can see on the picture below. Quality GPU and cooling prevent more serious changes but we chose to stabilize the clocks by dragging the Power Target slider far right, allowing for maximum TDP. It worked and, as you can see from the second picture below, the GPU clock is nailed to 1269MHz.

The next photo proves that TGT really chose low leakage chips. Not even 100MHz extra turned out too much for this card. The maximum auto-overclock was 1289MHz, and as you can see from the picture below, the GPU ran at this clock the entire time.

We didn’t have much time on our hands and thus couldn’t check, but we’re pretty sure you could squeeze out a bit more from this card.

If you read the review in detail, you know that the cooling is excellent. First and foremost, it remained quiet when the card was working hard and it didn’t even flinch after our 100MHz (205MHz higher than reference) – golden silence. Note that such performance means we never utilized the cooler to its max, i.e. we didn’t speed up the fans.

Point of View / TGT found a perfect formula for cooling overclocked GTX 680 (GK104 GPUs). There was no secret recipe – massive cooling did the trick.

If you look at the cooling performance, it will be clear why TGT chose it to cool the fastest GTX 680s. The cooler was more than up to the task throughout our tests. We overclocked the core by another 100MHz (205MHz higher than reference) and the memory by 225MHz (900MHz effectively), but the cooler hardly noticed.

The cooling does however have one shortcoming – it takes up three slots. While you may find enough room for SLI or three-way SLI in most rigs, you can just about forget about fitting a Quad SLI setup.

Games don’t seem to notice the doubled memory, but this does not mean that future games won’t benefit from it. The good news is that 4GB of memory didn’t negatively affect GPU overclocking.

The GTX 680 Ultra Charged 4GB graphics card uses low leakage chips handpicked by TGT, and the overclock to 1211MHz (Max Boost clock 1289MHz) confirmed it. Note that the GTX 680 Beast’s Base GPU clock went up to 1223MHz, and we wouldn’t expect anything less from the Ultra Charged cards, provided you’re willing to put some work into it.

The 4GB version goes for €60 more than the 2GB one, but this is not only due to more memory – PoV/TGT’s handpicked low leakage chips provide excellent auto overclocking and further overclocking headroom, making the GTX 680 Ultra Charged 4GB pack one serious punch.

We spent some time over the weekend getting to know EVGA’s GTX 680 Classified a bit better and the review is finally ready. The GTX 680 Classified has ultimately produced the highest overclock we’ve managed on a GTX 680, but only after using the EVBot to overvolt the card. We were still a bit disappointed in general as the GTX 680 didn’t fully meet our expectations, and you’ll soon see why.

Before we move on, we’d like to inform our dear readers, who think that we intentionally left out AMD’s fastest cards, that we’re expecting Sapphire’s HD 7970 VaporX in our lab, so we’ll include it in the tables as soon as possible. Besides, our mission today is to show the GTX 680 Classified in all its glory, rather than engage in red vs. green debates.

EVGA GTX 680 Classified is much different than the reference design. The company added 10 additional phases for the GPU, bringing it up to 14-phase power. The company used a wider and longer PCB with a cooler that was also made bigger, whereas the memory capacity was doubled. The last detail is the EVBot connector, which can be used for sensor readouts as well as overvolting.

EVGA selected only the best GK104 chips. Naturally, OC results greatly depend on quality of graphics chips, since not all will handle extreme clocks. Still, even though all graphics chips aren’t equal, you can bet that the chips running GTX 680 Classified cards will work better than average. The GTX 680 Classified comes with a factory overclock, where Base GPU clock ended up at 1111MHz. So, although the GTX 680 Classified is EVGA’s fastest air-cooled card, 1111MHz won’t earn it the title of the fastest factory overclocked GTX 680.

The memory was left at reference clocks, meaning 1502MHz (6008MHz effectively), whereas the capacity is up from standard 2GB to 4GB. Although the card’s memory was doubled, it wasn’t overclocked so the bandwidth stands at 192.3GB/s.

EVGA threw in two 6-pin-to-8pin power cables that look great but what we'd really like to see is something along the lines of gift EVBot device.

The GTX 680 Classified is bigger than the reference card, but is designed to take up two slots in width. At the same time, this allows enthusiasts to chain up to four GTX 680 Classifieds in Quad SLI. The Classified’s cooler is a touch up of the reference (GTX 580) cooler, where EVGA extended the heatsink and replaced the 6.5 fan with an 8cm one.

Many of Nvidia’s partners have gone with dual fan coolers in order to keep thermals in check. In fact, thermals tend to be the biggest limitation in overclocking GTX 680s, so some companies threw in three or more fans. Naturally, such cards are wider than two slots, so you can forget about Quad SLI.

The fan has a speed limit and it won’t go faster than 55%, i.e. more than 3240 RPM. Although factory overclocked, the GTX 680 Classified was a bit quieter than the reference model, in other words – it’s quiet.

On the back you see GDDR5 memory modules that were added to double the capacity to 4GB.

The plastic shroud isn’t difficult to take off, especially since the cooler is very similar to the reference one.

The fan is taken off easily, which should come in handy come cleaning time.

EVGA made the heatsink wider and once we took it off, we saw that the GTX 680 Classified uses Vapor Chamber technology (reference GTX 680 cards come with regular, copper blocks). The cooler also has a Vapor Chamber heatpipe that helps with heat distribution. All in all, the cooler looks much like the one on GTX 580 cards.

The memory is cooled by a large heatspreader, which spans the entire PCB and does a good job of reinforcing it. The power components are easy to spot and you can count 14 phases yourself. The Classified packs a 14+3 phase VRM, whereas the reference card has 4+2 VRM.

Overclocking and overvolting requires power, so the card comes with two 8-pin connectors. Factoring in the power it gets via PCI Express, the Classified can draw up to 375W. Note that reference cards come with one 6-pin and one 8-pin connector, allowing for 300W.

Among the features that make the Classified stand out is the EVBot connector, which is right next to the power connectors. Note however that the EVBot is purchased separately. We hooked it up to the card via a 105cm long cable and used it to boost the voltage beyond 1.175v (advised at 0.0625v increments).

GTX 580 Classified’s EVBot connector was on the I/O panel, but we like the new placement as well. Besides, most new cases come with watercooling holes, which can be used to route the cable from the back.

The GTX 680 Classified isn’t short on interesting features, and the BIOS switch next to the EVBot connector is one of them. The switch offers Normal, OC and LN2 BIOS’, LN2 mode disables some power protections for extreme overclocking. Unfortunately, it didn’t help with extreme overclocking as the cooler quickly turned out to be the choke point.

Voltage monitoring header gets quite handy when overvolting, and you’ll find it next to the BIOS switch (EVGA will make a small adapter separately that will make voltage probes able to attach easily).

The I/O panel holds standard HDMI and DisplayPort connectors, as well as two dual link DVI outs, just like on the reference GTX 680 cards. EVGA made the I/O panel air exhausts bigger to improve airflow but one part of the cooler will stay behind. Unfortunately, this means that some of the hot air will remain in the case.

Overclocking results for the GTX 680 Classified that you see in the tables were scored at 1161MHz (max boost 1238MHz) / 6008MHz. However, we could've scored the same without using EVBot at all.

3D Mark 11

Crysis 2

Overclocking results for the GTX 680 Classified that you see in the tables were scored without overvolting at 1161MHz (max boost 1238MHz) / 6008MHz.

Aliens vs Predator

Metro 2033

Unigine Heaven

We split the OC part into two sections because we used PrecisionX software and EVBot overclocking device. As we said earlier, EVBot is purchased separately, one more reason to take a closer look at it. Users who don’t have EVBot will have to resort to software tools, but note that we couldn’t overvolt the GPU without the EVBot.

EVGA didn’t mess with GPU voltage on the Classified, which means that the maximum is set at 1.175v. Nvidia cited security reasons behind its insistence on specified values, claiming that it guarantees only for cards and GPUs operated within the specified voltage limits. This means that a product will not pass "NV green light" when OVed, as it will exceed the maximum power consumption and maximum heat dissipation. This is why EVGA didn’t launch an OVed Classified, but rather went for the EVBot, which can boost the voltage all the way up to 1.850v. Also warranty is not impacted by using EVBot.

Using only PrecisionX tool and not the EVBot, we overclocked the Base GPU clock by +50MHz. Although this may not seem impressive at first, the card is already overclocked to 1111MHz, making ours quite a decent result of 1161MHz (Max Boost clock at 1238MHz). It’s also important to note that no two GPUs will overclock/score identically. It appears as if we weren’t particularly lucky with our GPU, because we expected more. In comparison, we overclocked our GTX 680 Signature to 1185MHz.

Overclocking the memory spells more bad news for the maximum GPU clock, even more so for cards packing 4GB. Memory also gets hot and consumes power, which may result in hitting maximum TDP and thermal limit faster. We’d still advise you to overclock the memory, especially if you’re interested in gaming performance. In fact, increasing the bandwidth occasionally yielded bigger performance boosts than the same card with only its GPU overclocked.

4GB cards come with a realistic chance that one of the chips won’t be in the “mood” for overclocking, making its clock the limitation for overclocking. The maximum memory clock without overvolting was at about 6800MHz.

EVBot’s last firmware version includes support for overclocking the GTX 680 Classified and Classified SR-X motherboard. You can tell whether your hardware supports the EVBot by looking for the 5-pin EVBot connector. The user manual is a bit unclear as it only lists options, without detailed descriptions. Of course, users can always find more info on EVGA’s portal, here,, but it should be said that EVGA aimed EVBot at experienced users that know what to do.

If you want to order the EVBot, we’d first recommend checking whether it’s running latest firmware that recognizes the GTX 680 Classifed. If not, you can flash it via any EVGA motherboard with an EVBot connector, otherwise it will be useless for the Classified.

The EVBot connects to the card via a 105cm cable. It can run three graphics cards and one motherboard simultaneously.

It seems as if the cooler was what kept us from improving our results. We noticed that the card downclocks as soon as it hits 79°C. Unfortunately, this critical threshold is easily hit at clocks above 1350MHz (boost clock), such as by playing a more demanding game. We replaced the reference thermal paste with GC Extreme and knocked a few °C.

We also noticed that the Classified isn’t happy with voltage beyond 1.3v, because it again started downclocking.

It can be said that the thermals are good. As long as the card runs at its factory clock of 1111MHz, GPU temperature won’t go over 72°C. Although we’ve seen some better performing GTX 680 coolers so far, we can’t take away from the fact that the Classified ran quietly both when gaming and idling. However, overclocking required us to increase the fan RPM.

The fan is limited to about 3240 RPM / 55%. The fan won’t go past this limit, which is most likely down to EVGA’s effort to keep noise down. Indeed, the fans got loud at these RPMs. We measured 63°C after our voltage-free overclock to 1161MHz (max. Boost 1239MHz) and the fan was running at its max.

After extreme overclocking over 1350MHz (boost clock), it was time for thermal throttling. We hit 80°C in no time, simply by playing more demanding games.

Consumption

Although the GTX 680 Classified has 4GB of memory and is factory overclocked, it consumes only about 10W more in average than the reference version. Overclocking and overvolting aren’t helpful in this respect either, and the maximum consumption we measured on the Classified was occasionally 50W higher than on the reference design.

EVGA GTX 680 Classified is made and aimed at enthusiasts and overclockers. This is why the card boasts an EVBot connector, the name that symbolizes EVGA-flavored overclocking. In fact, EVBot allowed for lighting fast overvolting of the GPU and memory. The card boasts 14+3 VRM design with two 8-pin power connectors. The cooler is large as well and the entire package suggests great fun.

Well, we had no shortage of fun – we can say that much. We spent a lot of time trying to hit 1300MHz (unless stated otherwise, GPU clock means Base GPU clock), but in vain. Perhaps we simply weren’t lucky enough to get a GPU that is capable of such a feat.

Part of the problem with overclocking limitations is the cooler itself. Namely, the cooler runs and cools the factory clocked GPU just fine, but extreme overclocking is a whole new ballgame. The GPU comes overclocked to 1111MHz while the memory was left at reference clocks. During our testing, we measured GPU Boost clocks up to 1211MHz. The cooler remained quiet after long sessions of Crysis 2 and temperatures didn’t exceed 72°C.

EVGA opted for the largest blower fan we’ve tested so far. EVGA replaced the reference 6.5cm fan with an 8cm one but although it looks quite powerful, its maximum RPM is locked at 55% / 3240 RPM. Although it’s not too loud at this RPM, you’ll hear it well. We think that Nvidia asked for the fan to be “restrained” and keep the card quiet. The cooler takes up only two slots, meaning that Quad SLI is possible.

The Base clock of 1260MHz quickly pushed the card to 80°C, which then triggered the downclocking to factory clocks. It’s no coincidence that Kingpin went for LN2 to overclock the GPU to 2GHz (boost clock).

EVBot is purchased separately and will set you back about €60. We must say that it would be phenomenal if EVGA gave away EVBots with its GTX 680 Classified cards. Nvidia doesn’t’ support overvolting and, as such, isn’t too anxious to give a green light on sales of overvolted cards. There’s no need to worry because, regardless of whether you use EVBot or not warranty is not impacted by using EVBot.

The factory overclock itself may not stand out. But the card should be looked at for its overclocking ability, and over voltage using EVBot (advised at 0.0625v increments).

We’d normally advise average users to look elsewhere, unless they’re really bent on spending big. Indeed, EVGA as well as other Nvidia’s partners offer many quality graphics cards that are €100+ cheaper.

EVGA’s GTX 680 Classified packs 4GB of memory, which handled overclocking quite well. Although the 4GB of memory may not cater to everyone, e.g. those who focus on GPU overclocking, it can still help in squeezing out maximum performance. We’ve noticed that extreme overclocking of the GPU alone doesn’t yield as significant performance improvements as possible when the memory is overclocked as well.

EVGA’s GTX 680 Classified currently goes for €662 or $660. Going by the price alone, the card ranks among the priciest water cooled GTX 680 cards, which seems about right considering what the card aims for. If overvolting and overclocking aren't your cup of tea however, then you're probably better off picking up Point of View's GTX 680 TGT Charged Edition 4GB, which is pretty much identical except for the cooling and that €107 that will stay in your pocket. As for the GTX 680 Classified, quality tools always cost a pretty penny and ordinary prices are best left for ordinary cards. EVGA’s GTX 680 Classified is a great product if you like overclocking and have the right tools for the job, better cooling included.

EVGA GTX 680 Classified is a graphics card of a special calibre and we'd like to take this opportunity to thank EVGA for making this test possible. The GTX 680 Classified reared its face at Computex, but it's already available in shops. A glance at the card reveals what this cards is for - huge cooling, two 8-pin power connectors, 14+3 VRM design and EVBot connector make it clear that this is a card for overclockers.

It's difficult to tell the size of the card from the picture, but the GTX 680 Classified is about 2.5cm longer and taller than the standard GTX 680 (depicted below is GTX 680 Beast which uses the PCB of standard size). The larger PCB made it possible to replace the 6cm fan with an 8cm one.

The card is priced at $659.99, which is pretty steep generally speaking. Additionally, EVBot is ordered separately, and you'll be needing it if you want to max out your GPU by overvoltaging. EVBot will set you back $90, but we suspect that extreme overclockers who'll resort to water or LN2 cooling won't really mind - it's the results that matter.

The GTX 680 packs a BIOS that offers three modes - normal, OC andlN2. The BIOS switch is next to the EVBot connector. LN2 and OC will turn off the power target limit, allowing for maximum overclocking. We've heard about some mouthwatering results with LN2, such as the one when Kingpin overclocked the GPU to 2GHz. This would of course be impossible with air cooling alone. We haven't played with overclocking yet, but we're hoping for minimum GPU clock of 1300MHz.

We won't show you the PCB and cooling up close, because we'll take the cooler off when we're done with testing. What we can see for now are memory modules on the back, and GTX 680 Classified comes with 4GB of it.

There are no air exhausts on the cooler other than on the I/O panel, which is typical of blower style coolers. When running at factory clocks, the GTX 680 Classified is cooler and quieter than the reference GTX 680. This is due to the larger fan and heatsink. EVGA redesigned the I/O panel in order to improve airflow and the exhausts are bigger than on the referencecard. The GTX 680 Classified has the same set of connectors like the reference GTX 680: two dual link DVIs, one HDMI and one DisplayPort. There are more air exhausts above the metal cover. We must admit that cases with additional exhausts above the expansion slots aren't quite common, but thankfully, our CoolerMaster Cosmos II was made to be future proof.

You can check out the first results we got at factory GPU clock of 1111MHz. The memory was left at reference 6008MHz (GDDR5 effectively). Judging by the results, GTX 680 Classified's performance with this moderate GPU overclock and no memory overclock is comparable to an above average GTX 680 card. We're hoping that overclocking will help GTX 680 Classified beat all other previous performance records seen for GTX 680.

Point of View \ TGT GTX 680 Beast has arrived and we can finally confirm it is the fastest factory overclocked GTX 680 card. GPU performance is at the next level thanks to the company's overclock, which boosted the GPU clock from reference 1006MHz to 1162MHz.

The memory was left intact, i.e. it runs at 1502MHz (6008MHz effectively). Many users look for overclocked graphics cards for the sole reason of not having to mess with it yourself, which is why we'd rather have seen Point of View \ TGT overclock the memory. Although we didn't do it yet, we're certain that overclocking the memory on Point of View \ TGT's GTX 680 Beast will go as smoothly as on the rest of the GTX 680 pack. Just like the reference card, the GTX 680 Beast comes with 2GB of GDDR5 memory.

As we suspected, TGT opted on the cooler we've seen on GTX 680 Ultra Charged cards. The cooler has three fans and not only does it keep the GPU cooler, it's quieter than the reference solution as well. The only potential downside of it would be the fact it takes up three slots. The central fan is a 9cm one while the other two are 8cm.

The heatsink has five heatpipes – tree go towards the end and two towards the I/O panel.

GPU temperatures didn't exceed 71 degrees Celsius in Crysis 2, which is an excellent score considering the fans remained almost inaudible, even in long gaming sessions. The cooler did an excellent job despite the incredibly hot weather in Austria as of late.

The card is powered via one 8-pin and one 6-pin power connectors (the reference PCB uses two 6-pin power connectors). Consumption is some 25W higher than on the reference GTX 680. Point of View / TGT used five phase PWM design, one phase more than on the reference card.

The GTX 680 Beast comes with a rich selection of video outs an can run up to four displays simultaneously. Users get two dual-link DVI outs, one standard HDMI and one DisplayPort.

First impressions are excellent - gaming at 2560x1600 is a joy. However, it's the cooler that took the main stage, as it's really quiet and performs great. Point of View \ TGT GTX 680 Beast is not listed yet, but should be priced similarly to GTX 680 TGT Beast Watercooled Edition, which goes for about 560 euro.

So far we've had a few GTX 670 graphics cards in our tests. Throughout the tests, we've seen that overclocked GTX 670 cards can score comparably to GTX 680 and what's even better, many of Nvidia's partners offer factory overclocked GTX 670s running at GTX 680 clocks. One such card is Gainward's GTX 670 Phantom 2GB.

The Phantom's GPU runs at 1006MHz while the memory is at 1527MHz. Note that the reference clocks are 915MHz for the GPU and 1502MHz for memory.

An important difference compared to the GTX 680 is that the GTX 680 comes with eight SMX units and 1536 CUDA cores (each unit containing 192 CUDA cores), while the GTX 670 has seven SMX units and 1344 CUDA cores. Nvidia kept the identical memory system used on its GTX 680 card, meaning four 64-bit memory controllers (256-bit memory interface) and 2GB of GDDR5 memory.

We already tested the GTX 670 Phantom, here, and today we'll show you what it's capable of when running in SLI. What we're particularly interested in is the price-performance ratio. We're hoping that two GTX 670 Phantom cards will score similarly to two GTX 680, which would mean that they outscore a single GTX 690. Note that buying two GTX 670 Phantom cards can save up to 250 euro compared to two GTX 680 cards or a single GTX 690.

With the launch of GTX 670, Gainward launched a new version of its ExperTool, which is now in version II. ExperTool allows for overclocking Kepler based graphics, displaying sensor readouts or doing simple fan RPM control. It looks much better than the previous versions as well. You can find it here. We must say it would've been great if Gainward threw in a sensor readouts for the second card in SLI chain as well.

Tha card comes in a really neat looking box with a handle for carrying.

Phantom cooler has its own style. The fans are hidden and they can be seen only when looking straight at the card.

Three heatpipes are in charge of transferring the heat from the coolers base to the heatsink. Two 8cm fans take care of cooling the heatsink.

GTX 670 Phantom graphics card comes with two dual-link DVIs, standard HDMI and DisplayPort connectors. The card can run up to four displays simultaneously.

The cooler base is made of aluminum instead of more commonly used copper.

GTX 670 Phantom is about 24.7cm long, which is about the same as the reference GTX 670, but the Phantom cooler will take up three slots while the reference cooler is only two slots wide. This can prove to be a problem if you are planning on 3-way SLI.

Nvidia decided to use a minimalistic PCB, which is only 17.2cm long. Actually the cooler is to blame for the GTX 670's length of 24.7cm. As you can see from the pictures below, Phantom's PCB is slightly changed. All memory chips are placed on the GPU side, while with the reference design, odd and even memory chips were placed on opposite sides of the PCB.

Beside the difference in distribution of the memory chips, Gainward ’s PCB looks similar to the Nvidia’s reference PCB showed on picture below.

Nvidia GTX 670 2GB

GTX 670 comes with 2GB of memory. It has eight memory chips, just like the reference card. Gainward’s GTX 670 Phantom runs Hynix memory chips (model No: H5GQ2H24AFR-R0C), which are specified to run at 1500MHz (6000MHz GDDR5 effectively).

Gainward GTX 670 Phantom’s cooler has to deal with the factory overclock but it manages to do its job well, at least when it comes to keeping thermals in check. Our test with a single GTX 670 Phantom graphics card revealed temperatures up to 79 degrees Celsius, but SLI drove the first card to 85 degrees Celsius.

When it comes to noise levels, a single GTX 670 Phantom is about the same as the reference GTX 670. Cooling performance and noise are even better after considering the high factory overclock of the Phantom, but we have indeed seen better. Unfortunately, our GTX 670 Phantom SLI ran a bit loud after some gaming. The fans weren't too loud, but they are louder two GTX 680s in SLI.

The fans are quiet in idle mode.

For overclocking we left the fans in AUTO mode, since manual settings didn’t affect overclocking that much. Thermals were good even after our overclock but the fans are really loud.

Power Consumption

With two GTX 670 graphics cards we can save more than 200 euros and gain similar performance to GTX 680 SLI. We need to overclock those GTX 670 cards off course, but for those who do not want to deal with overclocking, two GTX 670 Phantom cards are a viable option. The GTX 670 Phantom sports a factory overclocked GPU which is set at 1006MHz, and this is exactly the same clock used on the GTX 680.

Performance of a single GTX 670 Phantom graphics card is close to that of GTX 680 but not the same, mainly because GTX 680 has 1536 CUDA cores while GTX 670 has 1344. We haven't noticed any significant difference in games except in tessellation heavy tests. Memory subsystems on both cards are the same 256-bit ones and each card has 2GB of GDDR5 memory. As expected, GTX 670 SLI power consumption is a bit lower compared to the GTX 680 SLI.

The performance boost we got with SLI is great. We could play any game at 2560x1600. Additional overclocking is similar to what we scored with a single GTX 670 Phantom card.

The only thing we did not like with GTX 670 Phantom SLI is fan noise. The fans are not too loud but are not comfortable either. Two GTX 680 cards in SLI are a bit quieter compared to the GTX 670 Phantom SLI.

If you value quiet operation and power consumption, the best decision would be to go for GTX 690. 1000 euro buys two GTX 680 cards, or a single GTX 690. At the same time, 760 euro for two GTX 670 Phantom cards sounds like a much more reasonable choice for most of us.

In short we just showed that performance-wise, two factory overclocked GTX 670 Phantom cards can hold their own against the GTX 680 SLI, and they are certainly a more affordable option. Bear in mind though that Phantom cooling is three slots wide.

Today we'll examine just why Skiron is Cooltek's top mid-range case. So far we've tested several cases from Cooltek and we must admit each was better than the last, so we're hoping Skiron will deliver as well.

Skiron packs all the features a modern computer case should have, including USB 3.0 connectors, modular drive cages, plenty of room for high-end components, etc. However, Cooltek has a few aces up its sleeve that should differentiate Skiron from the competition.

The box artwork shows Skiron with white mesh design, but the case is actually black and the pictures may mislead the customers. The box is tough and Skiron arrived unharmed. The box has no cutouts for easier carrying.

Cooltek made sure to ship all the needed material that users may need while setting up their pet. There is also a short but detailed manual.

Cooltek decided to offer black/white and red/black versions of Skiron, and both come with black exterior. You can see both on the pictures below.

The large mesh on the left panel caught our eye, so we'll start there.

The mesh is protruding out of the case, which allows for CPU coolers up to 175mm tall. Additionally, this provides extra room for fans. Mounting fans on the left side panel helps with CrossFire and SLI cooling. The mesh is large enough to take four 120mm fans, or a single 180/200/220/230mm fan.

The rubber grommets are there to prevent fan noise that comes from vibration.

It would've been great if there was a dust filter on the mesh, but unfortunately this isn't the case.

The opposite, right side of Skiron also has air exhausts, although they're not meant for fans. The hole in the bottom corner is parallel with the 3.5'' cage.

The bottom part of front panel is reserved for fans, while the top part has room for three 5.25'' optical drives.

Unlike Cooltek's cases we've tested before, Skiron comes with removable 5.25'' covers, the kind that doesn't require taking off the front panel. The covers have handles that you use to take it out. Many users use at least some kind of a 3.5'' device, so shipping a 5.25''/3.5'' adapter cover is a pretty nice touch from Cooltek.

Skiron comes with four fans - a large 17cm one on the top panel (max.900RPM), one 12cm fan on the rear panel (max.1200RPM) and two 12cm fans on the front panel (max.1200RPM).

In order to reach the fans behind the front panel, we must remove the panel first. The panel is taken off by pulling it on the bottom and release it from the latches. Note however that the top panel should be removed first, otherwise the front panel latches could end up broken, picture below. Cooltek did not explain it in the user's manual, so users should be careful when removing the front panel.

Beneath the mesh is a thin layer of foam that acts as pre-filter, while the real mesh filter is in front of the fan.

The fans are taken out with the filter. The black/white version of Skiron comes with whide LEDs. The LEDs are in the front panel fans and on the top panel fan.

Power and reset keys are on the angled part on the top panel, so they're easy to reach if you keep your case under the table. Next to them are two sliders that control fan RPM.

Coltek's C.A.M.V.C. (Cooltek Advanced Modular Ventilation Concept) uses two channel fan rpm regulation with support for up to six fans. Skiron comes with four fans.

Skiron has six USB connectors. The top panel holds two USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 each, as well as audio out/in jacks.

Two USB 2.0 ports are hidden in a cleverly implemented compartment. It surely can't hurt because while USB sticks are tucked inside, you can be sure kids won't even notice it and you won't accidentally hit it and damage it. The compartment was large enough to take Corsair's pretty thick USB stick, which means that you're well covered.

You should be careful while taking the front panel off in order not to damage the USB ports.

Cooltek left another open compartment behind the I/O panel and you can use it for sticks, keys or such.

The top panel holds a 17cm fan (max. 900RPM). We got the fan mounted inside the case, but you can easily do it outside, in scenarios where you may need more room for a large CPU cooler.

Removing the top panel is done by pulling the back of the panel upwards. We were afraid we'd break something because the latches wouldn't let go easily.

On the bottom of the case, underneath the PSU slot is a removable filter. The second hole you see on the bottom of the case is another fan exhaust with a mesh over it.

Skiron has seven expansion slots. The expansion cards need to be screwed down and Cooltek provides thumb screws. The back panel comes with a 12cm fan.

Skiron packs plenty of room. It will take a CPU cooler up to 175mm and graphics up to 430mm long. If you leave the HDD cage inside, graphics can't exceed 311mm, but this is more than enough for today's high end cards. The case support ATX and mATX boards. The CPU backplate cutout is large enough and was compatible with several motherboards we've tried. The motherboard tray has a few cable management holes, but there isn't much room left behind the tray. The right side panel is 17mm away from the tray.

The grommets in the holes aren't fixed well and fall out easily when routing cables. Back of the motherboard tray could use a few more cable management anchors, since cabling must be fixed well due to restricted room; otherwise, the right panel cannot be closed. There is room left between the motherboard tray and the HDD cage. This may come in handy when using a wider motherboard that may close the cable management holes.

The cable hole next to the PSU should be wider. In fact, it didn't help us at all with our quite long 19cm Sapphire Pure Power PSU. PSUs up to 14cm long will not block the first cable hole.

The PSU stands are tiny, picture below. We'd love to see wider stands that will support longer PSUs. One rubber pad already came off when mounting our first PSU.

Below the PSU is a removable filter.

The fan on the top panel is placed right above the CPU power cable hole, so the cable is pretty difficult to pull through. The grommet on the hole fell out while we were pushing the cable through. Note that the fan can be mounted outside the top panel if it gets in your way.

Optical drives don't need crews and the toolless mechanism is quite nice. The same mechanism is on the back of the case as well.

The brackets holding 3.5'' drives are made of metal and come with rubber grommets to prevent vibration noise. The same brackets hold 2.5'' drives. The middle drive cage can easily be taken out and can be mounted on the bottom of the case.

The 2.5'' cage is unusual and perhaps even obsolete since the 3.5'' drives take 2.5'' ones as well, and all standard graphics cards already fit inside Skiron.

On the bottom of the case, below the HDD cage are air exhausts. If you choose to mount a fan there, the metal part can easily be removed.

All the fans are on 3-pn connector cables linked to fan regulators. As far as noise goes, Skiron is pretty quiet. Its cooling performance is satisfactory and if we are to pick hairs, we'd say that the cables are a bit too colorful for our taste.

Lowering the fan RPM dimms LED lighting as well, although the change won't be that noticeable.

The price range where Skiron resides (the lowest priced is currently 77 euro) lists many quality cases and Cooltek's job isn't the least bit easy. Some users prefer the looks, others look for performance or room, while most look for a quality mixture of the three.

If you choose Skiron, you won't have to worry about CPU cooler or graphics card compatibility - this is a large mid-tower case that will take anything. The case offers seven expansion slots, four stock fans and a fan RPM regulator.

Coolng performance is good but nothing remarkable. Still, we could say that the company made a good compromise between noise and performance. Besides, users who aren't content with the stock solution can always upgrade the case themselves, since it has room for additional six fans.

You can connect internal USB 3.0 cables to the motherboard's external I/O panel or you can use included converter for internal USB 3.0 connectors, which doesn't come with older USB 3.0 cases. Another thing we really liked is the front compartment with two USB ports, which is quite practical and came in really handy. Namely, you can keep your USB stick plugged in without fear of accidentally hitting it and/or breaking the port or stick.

Skiron is a well equipped case but its build quality didn't quite impress us. The chassis is tough enough but there are a few points where the company could've perhaps done better. Still, seeing as how they are not thigs of key importance, we would recommend Skiron as a case that will definitely do a good job.